The present invention relates to ball retrieval devices, and more particularly to a retrieval device adapted to retrieve golf balls from water hazards.
Golfing is one of the most popular sports in the world with individual participation at an all time high. While well known to be generally an expensive game especially when played on better golf course, aside from the initial purchase of golf equipment and the anticipated cart and greens fees, the most significant expense incurred by the average golfer appears to be the purchase of golf balls. The loss of golf balls due to errant hits into known and unknown hazards such as rough grassy areas, tall vegetation, ponds, and water hazards is not only a major frustration to the golfer, but as described, a potential source of great expense. It is commonly accepted that most golf balls are lost in water hazards that are an integral part of the design of a golf course. Therefore, the ability to retrieve balls that are lost in any type of hazard, water or otherwise, is of great importance to most golfers, especially those with limited resources.
Golf ball retrieving rakes are well known in the golfing field and are relatively common. Golf ball retrievers are available for harvesting either individual or multiple balls from both water hazards as well as from dense vegetation where physical ingress and egress would make a ball otherwise difficult if not impossible to retrieve. Typically, golf ball retrievers are mounted to telescoping poles. In addition, most available golf ball retrieving devices include a variety of rakes, scoops, disks, and other variance, which are manufactured of metal, plastic, or a combination of such materials.
One commercially available retriever captures the ball by rolling over it, forcing it past rims on opposing rolling disks. Others are shaped as a scoop to rake the ball by plowing the soil or bottom surface of the lake. It is not unusual for such devices to get snagged on obstructions or debris such as grass, weeds, rocks, and roots thereby significantly disturbing ecologically sensitive natural habitat of waterfowl and dislodging and uprooting vegetative bottom growth. Such retrievers also require a greater effort in managing a raking and harvesting process.
There remains a need to overcome such problems typically found in the art of harvesting balls in vegetated, rocky, muddy or uneven bottom water hazards, as well as in dry hazards or golf course roughs. The present invention seeks to satisfy such a need.
In view of the foregoing background, the present invention provides a ball retrieval device and method for retrieving a ball from a water hazard and typical golf course hazards with a minimal disturbance to surfaces upon which the ball rests, and with a minimal effort to do so. Embodiments of the present invention enable the retrieval of multiple balls within a single raking operation while reducing the amount of debris collected, and without snagging the device on vegetation or typically uneven, muddy bottom surfaces.
These features and advantages in accordance with the present invention are provided by a ball retrieving device which may contain a combination of features including a plate member adapted for a raking movement thereof, at least two spaced apart tines carried by the plate member, each tine having a leading edge and an opposing trailing edge, and a surface extending therebetween spaced apart from an opposing surface of an adjacent tine a distance greater than the diameter of a ball for enabling the at least two tines to guide the ball therebetween, and a flange carried along the trailing edge of each tine and outwardly extending therefrom for reducing the distance to less than the diameter of the ball and enabling a trapping thereof during a raking movement of the device.
Embodiments of the device may include each tine being of generally rigid construction. Alternatively, the surface of one tine is parallel to the opposing surface of the adjacent tine. Further, each tine may comprise a teardrop shape partition wall, wherein the leading edge extends from a stem portion proximate the plate member to a generally arcuate capturing portion. In one alternate embodiment, the flange may include a tapered end portion extending from the leading edge of the tine. Embodiments of the device may further include an array of spaced apart tines having greater than two tines therein.
One embodiment of the plate member may include a distal end adapted for connection to a handle, a proximal end attached to each tine within the array, and an arcuate leading edge extending from opposing outermost tines within the array to the distal end. A handle will typically be operable with the plate member for pulling the plate member and thus the tines along a ground surface having balls positioned therewith. Alternatively, a line or the like may be may be connected to the plate member for providing the pulling and raking movement.
In yet other embodiments resulting from the teachings of the present invention, the plate member, the tines, and the flanges carried by the tines may have a unitary construction. Further, the unitary construction may be formed from a molded plastic material.
A method aspect of the invention includes moving the plate member in a direction for enabling the tines to be carried along the ground surface in a raking manner from traveling from leading edge to trailing edge, contacting a ball with the leading edge of at least one tine for guiding the ball between adjacent tines, continuing the moving for enabling the flanges to contact the ball in a capturing movement between the adjacent tines for holding the ball within the device, and lifting the device from the ground for retrieving the ball therefrom.